Karthi is a secure actor, uplifts the scene: Raashii Khanna

With her latest release doing well, actress Raashii Khanna opens up about all things Sardar. She talks to us about working with Karthi, Mithran's direction, why she quit Twitter, success of Thiruchitrambalam and much more. Excerpts from the interview:
How did you come into this project?
Director Mithran sir approached me for a project with Karthi sir. At that time, I was already aware that pre-production of Sardar was happening, so I was excited.I had seen Irumbu Thirai earlier and I liked it. Ofcourse, I’ve always wanted to pair with Karthi sir, he’s a brilliant actor. I was very happy to be taken in for the narration and when he told me the story, it blew my mind. It talks about lot of information, it is not just entertainment, but also infotainment. And the exciting factor is the topic the film deals with, it has not been picked on before. On top of it, it is a spy thriller. So it will be a treat for movie lovers!
Tell us about your role in the film and working with Mithran…
I think Mithran has done a fabulous job with all the characters he has written. And the first time I heard about my character, I was happy with it. Finally, there is a role, which is written for a girl. It is not like she is here as a heroine or for a song. This girl is a lawyer, who is stubborn and fights for social causes. Somebody who believes that good wins in the end, that there is good and bad, right and wrong, which you don’t see in Karthi’s character as he is in the grey due to his experiences. So all the characters are well refined. And I thought Mithran is a feminist beacuse of the way he had written my character, he had supported the role.
On the sets, Mithran was very strict. Usually, with actors, they take prompting for big dialogues, even Tamil actors do too. But Mithran is against it. On the first day, he gives me a monologue and asks me to learn it. I took my time and learned it, and performed without prompting. I think that’s the dedication he expects from actors.
How was the experience of working with Karthi?
I heard that he is very jolly and fun-loving on the sets. On the contrary, he was serious but that was due to the way his character or film was going. He is always in character, all that he can talk about is how to do a scene. I think he is a very secure actor. He thinks for the upliftment of the scene, not just for his character. I told him he’ll become a good director, if he intends to become one.
Your previous film ‘Thiruchitrambalam’ was a big hit, did you expect this response? What does it mean to you?
I knew what I was getting, the character and the screen time. The way it was narrated to me, the belief and the way it had come out, it was exactly how it was imagined. I had a feeling my character would not be liked but the audience understood. They empathised with her, the whole 'different worlds' part. All the characters and scenes are very real, it connected with people, that was the reason why I signed the film and it worked out.
You recently quit Twitter, and many celebrities are doing the same off-late, what is it that keeps people away from it? And what are the downsides of social media?
I understand that you really need to be in touch with your audience. I'm a private person but I did come on social media for that reason. As an actor, you don’t really need to say something wrong for things to go wrong, sometimes things are just twisted. That’s the downside of social media.
For me, Twitter was a place where I was not active. If I need to post pictures or engage with fans, I can do so on other platforms. There was a lot of accessibility with it which I don’t really like. I want to do my job, do it nicely and not be out there while being accessible in the right way. See, negativity is everywhere, it didn’t bother me. I asked myself why I was there and I didn’t get any answers, so I left.
Your upcoming projects…
There was a phase till 2020, when I was constantly working… there were some health issues too. I was over-working and burned out. This year, consciously I decided, whatever projects I take up ,I am 100% percent sure I want to be part of it. There has to be something in the film. I want to be part of more content driven stuff. The Raj and DK’s show with Shahid Kapoor and Siddharth film is coming out next year which are content driven. I’m looking forward to it.